There are some wedding days where you can almost feel the energy before everything even begins. This June wedding on Mississippi Lake in Carleton Place, Ontario was one of those days. It was joyful. It was personal. It was full of laughter. And yes… it was also very, very rainy. But somehow, the rain became such a small part of the story because absolutely no one was going to let a little (or a LOT) of water ruin this celebration.
The wedding took place on a private property owned by the bride’s parents, right along Mississippi Lake in Carleton Place. To be honest, it’s hard to imagine a more meaningful place to gather all of your favourite people and get married. Instead of choosing a traditional wedding venue, they transformed a place already connected to their family into the setting for their entire day. A reception tent was set up on the property, the lake became the backdrop for their ceremony, and everything had that relaxed, intimate feeling that comes with celebrating somewhere that already feels like home.
An Outdoor Ceremony Along Mississippi Lake
Their ceremony was set up overlooking the water, and despite some questionable weather rolling through, we were actually able to have the outdoor ceremony they had planned.
For the most part, the rain was pretty light. A few drops here. A few drops there. Just enough to remind all of us that Mother Nature was definitely invited to the wedding but, everyone stayed put, and the ceremony continued. Then, almost as if the rain had been politely waiting for them to finish, it REALLY started coming down. Right at the end of the ceremony, the light rain turned into an absolute downpour.
Thankfully, they had made it through their ceremony outdoors, exchanged their vows, and were able to exit before everyone took cover. Was it exactly what they had pictured when they imagined their summer wedding? Probably not. But that is one of the things I love about wedding days. You can plan every detail, watch the forecast, create the timelines, and prepare for all the possibilities…and sometimes the weather is just going to do whatever it wants.
What matters is what you do with it. And these two and their entire group of family and friends decided they were going to have an incredible day regardless.
Rainy Wedding Portraits With Clear Umbrellas
Once it was time for portraits, the rain was still very much making up its mind about what it wanted to do. It would stop. Then start. Then stop again. So, we worked with it! Whenever we had a break in the rain, we snuck outside and grabbed as many portraits as we could. And when the rain returned, instead of calling it quits, we pulled out the clear umbrellas and kept going.
There is something about rainy wedding portraits that can feel so romantic, especially beside the lake. The umbrellas added another layer to the story of the day without taking away from the beautiful setting they had chosen. And I think that’s such a good reminder that your portraits don’t have to happen under perfectly blue skies to be beautiful.
Sometimes you just need a little flexibility, a clear umbrella, and a willingness to embrace what your wedding day is giving you. Because years from now, the rain is part of what they’ll remember. They’ll remember running for cover after their ceremony. They’ll remember standing together under clear umbrellas while the drops came down around them. Those imperfect little pieces become part of the story.
A Reception Filled With Contagious Laughter
If I had to choose one word to describe the rest of this wedding day, it would be joy. Not the quiet, subtle kind either. This was the kind of joy you could hear from across the tent. Everywhere I looked, someone was laughing. There were huge smiles, conversations happening in every direction, people leaning into one another, and this contagious energy that seemed to move through the entire reception.
As a photographer, those are some of my favourite celebrations to document because there is always something happening. You turn around and someone is laughing. You look across the tent and there’s another moment unfolding. You catch a group of friends completely losing it over something someone said.
It felt like everyone was genuinely SO happy to be there celebrating these two. And after everything the weather had thrown at them earlier in the day, nobody cared. It had poured. Shoes had probably gotten a little wet. Plans had to stay flexible. And absolutely none of it mattered. Everyone was there to celebrate, and that was exactly what they did.
When the Weather Becomes Part of the Story
I think sometimes there can be so much pressure for a wedding day to go exactly according to plan, especially when you’re planning an outdoor wedding. You picture the weather. You picture the ceremony. You picture the portraits. You spend months pulling all of these pieces together, and naturally, you want it to look the way you imagined.
But this wedding was such a beautiful example of why the feeling of a wedding day will always matter more than perfect circumstances. The rain didn’t take away from the joy. If anything, it highlighted it. Because when I think back on this day, I don’t immediately think, “That was the wedding where it poured.” I think about how much everyone laughed, the energy inside that reception tent, a ceremony overlooking Mississippi Lake, surrounded by the people they loved most, and two people who were willing to grab some umbrellas, head back outside, and keep enjoying their wedding day.
That’s the story and those are the kinds of wedding days I love getting to photograph. The ones that are beautiful not because every single thing went according to plan, but because the people at the centre of them were fully present for whatever the day brought. Rain and all.
Vendors
Photographer: Brittany Navin
Camcorder Rental: Rove Films
Hair Stylist: Vikki Beach
Makeup: Kelsey with Stephanie Bullock Makeup
Florist: Machan Orchard and Farm
Officiant: Suzanne Veh with All Season Weddings
Catering: Leatherworks Catering
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